Just wrote this for the school newspaper, tell me what you think Options

[Mommy]

then you would be wrong .....

I think its just that you are used to less wordy writing because I used proper punctuation. Proper comma usage is 1) comma between two sentences joined by a conjuction, 2) sometimes preceeding or following a dependent clause, 3) after a portion of a sentence where a natural pause is present. Of course there are more; however, these are the ones that are most relelvent to this story.

[THECHICKEN]

The last sentence says he walks with a limp... seems like the lyrics are that he DOESN'T walk with a limp in one of his songs

[Melanie]

I'm supposed to be interviewed by some Carline girl, know her? It's for a piece of legislation that I sponsored in ASG last night

[Billy]

Actually, that first sentence might not need any commas. The second one is a comma splice for sure. Actually, I am 100% sure the second comma is not needed in the sentence " Celebrity gossip is the name of this game, and most of us are here to play along, whether we want to openly admit it or not."

Had the sentence read: Celebrity gossip is the name of this game, and whether we want to openly admit it or not, most of us are here to play along" you would need the comma. But because you worded it the opposite way: Celebrity gossip is the name of this game, and most of us are here to play along whether we want to openly admit it or not." you do not need the comma.

But honestly, now a days, punctuation is a matter of opinion anyway.

[Dogmeat]

But honestly, now a days, punctuation is a matter of opinion anyway.

I know, huh? Too bad math can't be that way ...

That'd be the coolest thing ever to convince a bunch of people 2 + 2 doesn't equal 4, it equals the letter Q or some weird shit, get them to believe it, and then live the rest of your life knowing that you've completley and totally dominated these people's brains and that they are putty in your hands

[jonathan83]

I was always taught you don't do "comma and" ... and is a conjunctive word by itself therefore does not need prior punction or something...

then you would be wrong.

"We had milk, biscuits, and cream."

you would never say
"We had milk, biscuits and cream."

dogmeat loses this one, sorry.

[Jim]

then you would be wrong.

"We had milk, biscuits, and cream."

you would never say
"We had milk, biscuits and cream."

dogmeat loses this one, sorry.

WRONG, Good day, sir.

The Oxford Comma (also known as the comma after the and in a list) is purely, and I MEAN PURELY, optional.

Thank you, come again.

[GOB]

it's wrong because you don't have a second copy written in spanish, you discriminatory bitch.

[impala454]

i was always taught to leave out the last comma in a list and use and.

i.e:

This thread has become stupid, pointless, off topic and a waste of time.

[Mommy]

i was always taught to leave out the last comma in a list and use and.

i.e:

This thread has become stupid, pointless, off topic and a waste of time.

yeah, thats AP style... I already noticed that error earlier and fixed it. Some English styles still suggest the use of the last comma in a list though

[Jim]

Again, Oxford Comma = optional

[jonathan83]

WRONG, Good day, sir.

The Oxford Comma (also known as the comma after the and in a list) is purely, and I MEAN PURELY, optional.

Thank you, come again.

no. i was proving that dogmeat was wrong by saying "you never use a comma after and" when in fact, you CAN.

it's called a serial comma.

yeah it can be optional, but it's STANDARD use in American English. not common in British English. where do we live again?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_comma

[jonathan83]

oh one more thing

Although the Oxford comma is not always used, it should be applied to avoid ambiguity. Omitting the Oxford comma changes the meaning of a sentence, and unless the author is aware of the possible meaning the comma should be included rather than omitted.

* I spoke to the boys, Sam and Tom. — The boys refers to Sam and Tom.
* I spoke to the boys, Sam, and Tom. — The boys, Sam, and Tom are separate units; thus, four or more people were spoken to in all.
* I spoke to x, y and z. This sentence is stating that y and z are what comprise x.
* I spoke to x, y, and z. This sentence is stating that x, y, and z were all spoken to and that they are different entities.

so no, it's not always optional as it can change the meaning of a sentence completely.

[Mommy]

yeah, i prefer the comma in a series because it makes a sentence less ambiguous at times. at work, im not allowed to use it though because its not AP style